Sign construction



Feb. 20, 1968 B. G. CHRIETZBERG ETAL 3,369,312

SIGN CONSTRUCTION Filed July 25, 1966 INVENTORS. Bill G. Chriefzberg Frank V. Newel/ United States Patent Office 3,369,312 Patented Feb. 20, 1968 3,369,312 SIGN CONSTRUCTION Bill G. Chrietzberg, Raytown, and Frank V. Newell,

Kansas City, Mo., assignors to Best Stamp & Manufacturing Company, Kansas City, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed July 25, 1966, Ser. No. 567,702 4 Claims. (Cl. 40140) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to improvements in sign construction and, more particularly, to signs which are normally used upon desks in business and professional offices.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a sign wherein the indicia-bearing panel thereof is re leasably retained in position without the necessity of utilizing complicated spring and support structure which clutters the overall appearance of the sign and thereby lessens its attractiveness.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide a sign that is adapted for retaining a series of individual indicia-bearing elements which may easily be interchanged and substituted to vary the information conveyed by the sign. The individual units cooperate with novel retaining means to effect a positive mounting of the units.

It is another object of the instant invention to provide sign construction wherein an extrusion method may be utilized to efficiently and economically construct the sign while additionally creating an aesthetically pleasing appearance.

Other objects include details of construction which will become apparent from the following specification and accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a sign made pursuant to the teachings of our invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view taken along line 33 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a further enlarged, perspective view of the retaining means for the sign.

The sign of the present invention broadly comprises a support and an indicia-bearing panel 12 which is mounted on support 10 by retaining means in the form of a pair of spring plates 14. Support 10 may conveniently be constructed by extrusion techniques to form an integral, elongated structure as illustrated in the drawing.

Support 10 includes a pair of vertically spaced, parallel channels 16 which open toward each other to present opposed, facing slots 18. Each channel 16 includes a front leg 20, a bight 22, and a rear leg 24 having respective inner surfaces 26, 28 and 30 which define slots 18.

An elongated back member 32 interconnects rear legs 24 of channels 16 and is inset from inner surfaces 30 of rear legs 24 to present a recessed surface 34. The rear surface 36 of back member 32, and rear leg 24 of lower channel 16, merge with a neck 38 which is secured to a flat bottom section 40 supported by longitudinally extending legs 42. Bottom 40 and legs 42 cooperate to form a base for mounting back member 32 in a vertically inclined plane as best shown in FIG. 2.

Panel 12 comprises a plurality of rigid, individual plate-like elements 44 which are slidably and complementally received within slots 18 and disposed in sideby-side relationship to present panel 12. Elements 44 include selected numerals, letters and punctuation which are arranged to convey desired information such as the name of an individual. Panel 12, as a unit, thus presents a front indicia-bearing face 46, and .a rear face 48 overlying recess surface 34, and the longitudinal margins of panel 12 are slidably received within corresponding slots 18. The thickness of each element 44 is slightly less than the width of slots 18 to accommodate sliding thereinto, but the thickness is sufficient to prevent misalignment or excessive play of elements 44.

Referring to FIG. 4, spring plate 14 is substantially rectangular in configuration to present opposed side edges 50 and opposed end edges 52 and 54. Plate 14 is creased adjacent end edge 54 to form an offset or bowed zone which presents a peak 56 and opposed lower contact stretches 58 spaced from peak 56, one of the stretches 58 coinciding with end edge 54. An ear 60 extends substantially perpendicularly from end edge 52.

Prior to insertion of springs 14, the longitudinal margins of rear face 48 of panel 12 rest on corresponding inner surfaces 30 of rear leg 24, there being a longitudinally extending opening 62 presented between rear face 48 and recess surface 34 of back member 32. A spring plate 14 is provided for each end of panel 12 for retaining the corresponding end-most element 44 in place.

Each spring plate 14 is placed in position by inserting end edge 54 into opening 62 at the corresponding end of panel 12. Spring 14 is shifted longitudinally until car 60 engages the outer side edge of panel 12. The unbiased distance between peak 56 and contact stretches 58 with respect to back member 32 and panel 12 is greater than the distance therebetween whereby peak 56 engages recess surface 34, and contact stretches 58 engage rear face 48 to urge panel 12 outwardly from back member 32. Spring 14 thus resiliently biases panel 12 so that the longitudinal margins of front face 46 yieldably engage the inner surface 26 of front leg 20 for frictional interengagement therewith.

After both springs 14 have been inserted to retain endmost elements 44 in position, the remaining center elements 44 will be retained in proper position by virtue of the side-by-side engagement with adjacent elements. Elements 44 are thus mounted by positive retaining means which preclude inadvertent removal from support 10. Should it be desired to change the name on panel 12, it is only necessary to manually shift end-most elements 44 outwardly to release springs 14 and thereby permit removal of all of the elements. A substitute set of elements 44 may then be slidably inserted into slots 18 and retained by springs 14 as described above.

It will be appreciated that the novel springretaining means of this invention obviate the necessity of providing framework structure at the ends of the sign for housing latching or spring components. Thus, a neat appearing sign having smooth, uninterrupted lines is presented. The sign is placed into use by setting legs 42 of the base on a desk or the like which places panel 12 in indicia-viewing position.

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Asign comprising:

a pair of spaced, parallel channels opening toward each other to present opposed, facing slots and corresponding front and rear legs;

an elongated back member interconnecting said rear legs;

an elongated panel member having opposed, longitudinal margins slidably received within corresponding slots, the panel member presenting a front indicia-bearing face, and a rear face overlying said back member and spaced therefrom to present a longitudinally extending opening therebetween; and

a spring plate disposed in said opening, the spring having a relatively offset section to present a first portion engaging said back member and a second portion engaging said panel member, the unbiased distance between said portions with respect to said members being greater than the distance between the members whereby said spring urges the members apart to cause the longitudinal margins of said front face to yieldably engage the inner surfaces of corresponding front legs for frictional interengagernent therewith, said spring being rectangular to present opposed end and side edges, there being an ear extending substantially perpendicularly from one of said ends, and a bowed zone formed adjacent the other end, the zone presenting a transverse peak and opposed lower contact stretches, one of said stretches coinciding with the other end.

2. The invention of claim 1, said back being inset from the inner surface of said rear legs so that the latter hold the panel in spaced relationship to said back member to form said opening, said panel comprising a 4 plurality of individual plate-like elements disposed in side-by-side relationship in said slots, there being a spring at each end of the panel retaining the corresponding endmost elements.

3. The invention of claim 2, and a base secured to said back member for supporting the panel in indiciaviewing position.

4. The invention of claim 3, said base, back member, and channels being longitudinally coextensive and formed as an integral extruded structure.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 833,247 10/1906 Sampson 40l40 1,243,393 10/1917 Farnham 40-140 2,161,193 6/1939 Phillips 40140 2,730,824 1/1956 Cohen 401.5

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner.

R. W. WEIG, Assistant Examiner. 

